Key Formula 1 figures cautious on fan survey results

[Rob]

Senior Formula 1 figures have urged caution in the way findings of fan surveys are interpreted following results that include calls for a return of refuelling and a tyre war.

Two major fan surveys were recently carried out - one by AUTOSPORT, F1 Racing and Motorsport News, and another by the Grand Prix Drivers' Association.

The results of the former were presented to various chiefs in the F1 paddock, and some expressed surprise at what fans say they want to see.

On the subject of F1 returning to more durable rubber (63.3 per cent in favour) and a battle between tyre companies (77.9 per cent in favour; GPDA 80 per cent), Red Bull team principal Christian Horner told F1 Racing: "I think that's rose-tinted spectacles.

"If you go back and look at what Ferrari did with Bridgestone against Michelin with Renault - everyone else suffered.

"[More durable tyres] will make the racing worse, you'll have one-stop races which are never exciting."

F1 refuellingMercedes motorsport chief Toto Wolff highlighted that a return to refuelling (61.3 per cent in favour; GPDA 60 per cent) would "limit the variance on strategy and you will see less overtaking".

McLaren racing director Eric Boullier added: "The problem with refuelling is you get into a computer-driven strategy with no flexibility.

"Today you can mix-up the strategy quite a bit, which you wouldn't be able to if you had to refuel."

Manor president and sporting director Graeme Lowdon said any call for refuelling and a tyre war "hasn't been thought through".

"People forget, no-one used to overtake in the refuelling days, it was all done in the pitstops," he added.

"Sadly I think a bit of amnesia has crept in from the fans with regard to those two things."

In response to 50.4 per cent of fans being against F1's drag reduction system to aid overtaking, Boullier said the message is mixed.

"I watch old races sometimes at home and you look at the huge gap between the cars - there was very little overtaking," he said. "But we enjoyed them.

F1 DRS"In 2013 we had perhaps the closest-ever racing in Formula 1 and there were so many overtaking manoeuvres and pitstops that people couldn't understand what was going on.

"That was a crazy season. What do people want - overtaking or not?"

Pirelli chief Paul Hembery believes it would be risky for F1 to base its direction purely on the results of the surveys.

"If you want exciting racing, the survey results go against that," he said.

"A team will spend a lot of money on the best tyres and the best engine and there will be no overtaking and they'll disappear into the distance.

"That happened in the early 2000s and the audiences fell through the floor.

"The responses of the survey seem to point towards that so people need to think about what they're saying."

The full results of the Global Fan Survey - including much more analysis and reaction from the F1 paddock - will be published in the August issue of F1 Racing magazine on sale in the UK on 16 July.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/119770

[Rob]

But dont we have 1 stop races now? with pretty much all the same in strategy.

I want overtaking, but not artificial.

[TigerKing]

I agree with the anti refueling and rejecting the tyre wars, however, DRS is crap. I always laugh at how the NBCSN commenters ignore DRS overtakes or just say "a standard DRS overtake" but when a real overtake happens they freak out. If the commentators aren't enjoying it, how can they expect fans to enjoy it?
DRS must go back to the dark hole it came from. 2010's overtakes was much better because of the absence of it.

[SS454]

Tire war is bad, but I do think the tires could use some tweaking. Allow the drivers to push the cars, how often do the drivers complain they must back off a slower car so they dont destroy the tires?

But honestly, these surveys do show most fans are a bit ignorant to the realities of the current rules, and don't understand what certain changes will actually do.

I admit, I would be one that would have thought having refueling would increase the options for strategy. Cars starting on different fuel loads meant a given car could be faster than another just by the weight difference, plus a shorter stint strategy meant a deliberate faster pace vs a longer enduro pace.

[Nand0Nand0]

...I want overtaking, but not artificial.

This with a slight mod, I want to see battles for position - doesn't matter if it ends in an overtake or not

[Hornet]

I like how Manor's president bashed the fans, proclaim that no overtaking was ever done during refueling era, and proceed to use the term amnesia which ironically could be used to describe himself.

Tire war is bad, but I do think the tires could use some tweaking. Allow the drivers to push the cars, how often do the drivers complain they must back off a slower car so they dont destroy the tires?

But honestly, these surveys do show most fans are a bit ignorant to the realities of the current rules, and don't understand what certain changes will actually do.

I admit, I would be one that would have thought having refueling would increase the options for strategy. Cars starting on different fuel loads meant a given car could be faster than another just by the weight difference, plus a shorter stint strategy meant a deliberate faster pace vs a longer enduro pace.

Just because these teams are resistant to changes, it doesn't necessarily make their claims 100% true. We have to remember that these teams are trying to protect their own interest as well, such as cost. Smaller teams will always resist changes, especially if the changes increase cost for them.

I remember once a Torro Rosso boss claiming that testing is useless because they do not learn anything. Which of course we all know it isn't true. But it just goes to show it works. There's a whole lot of politics in F1, and nothing will ever be solve unless the teams are willing to take a step back and actually think about the future of the sport first before their own interest.

[Rob]

This with a slight mod, I want to see battles for position - doesn't matter if it ends in an overtake or not

i would rather have 1 great overtake rather than 50 or more articial overtakes. That 1 great move you know has been worked at, taken balls to pull off. Not just wait till the straight and push a button to help overtake. Its taking an art away from the drivers. Taken part of the great sport away aswell, as the overtakes happen so often, they become, i dont know, meaningless.

[Rob]

I like how Manor's president bashed the fans, proclaim that no overtaking was ever done during refueling era, and proceed to use the term amnesia which ironically could be used to describe himself.




Just because these teams are resistant to changes, it doesn't necessarily make their claims 100% true. We have to remember that these teams are trying to protect their own interest as well, such as cost. Smaller teams will always resist changes, especially if the changes increase cost for them.

I remember once a Torro Rosso boss claiming that testing is useless because they do not learn anything. Which of course we all know it isn't true. But it just goes to show it works. There's a whole lot of politics in F1, and nothing will ever be solve unless the teams are willing to take a step back and actually think about the future of the sport first before their own interest.

[Nova]

Thats it then..why did they bother asking? they all know everything..So then u experts..why is F1 so boring? Why dont u guys use your brilliant imagination and fix F1?
Waste of time.

[Stormy]

I think a tire war is a bad idea. Some teams will suffer a lot because of an inferior tire. I think one tire distributor is enough, so all stay equal from that aspect. But i think the tires should be a lot stronger so the drivers would not calculate all the time about their tire durability. Also bring back refueling, a lot of meaningful pit strategy will happen that way. Keep and develop KERS because its a great thing and its up to the driver when to use it. DRS needs to be shut down, no more DRS, because its an artificial overtaking, its just stupid. Bring back all communications team-driver wise because this makes things more fun with the audience. And the main thing, make the cars faster and harder to drive, the rest will come.

[Senna4Ever]

I just saw the MotoGP race in Assen last weekend ... after the race I just had my head hang loose because it shows so much where F1 today really suffers on all fronts ...

[Nova]

So I guess any return to V8's is totally out of the question??
Are we stuck w/hybrids forever? What a drag, but I think we are.
Really sad. This move to these engines should have been made for the future, in the future.
Id say 2020 wouldve been an ok target.

[Stormy]

So I guess any return to V8's is totally out of the question??
Are we stuck w/hybrids forever? What a drag, but I think we are.

Well they can make hybrids V8, can they?

[TigerKing]

They could also make V10 hybrids. Imagine the power and sound that engine would produce!
I think i just found a new proposal for the FIA.

[Nova]

Sure they can, but there was nothing wrong w/V8's now was there..
And they keep asking us what we want, then not giving it. Why ask.

[dpiatto]

Team principal press conference was hilarious with VJ Malia's comments about un-crapping being pure class.
Looks like F1 is stuck with the hybrids so no point in discussing anything as it will remain crap.

[Hornet]

Sure they can, but there was nothing wrong w/V8's now was there..
And they keep asking us what we want, then not giving it. Why ask.

I believe it's part of modernizing the technology in F1. Love it or hate it, we have to admit that high capacity NA engines are old tech and they were only there because of the regulations. In an open formula, all teams will go for turbo charged V6 due to it's efficiency, which is something we actually saw happened, until FIA banned turbo tech.

Furthermore, when we see other sports like LeMans, they are adopting turbo engine with hybrid system too. So had F1 stuck with V8, we would look ancient when compared to LMP, and F1 would be less attractive to car makers as they will not be able to develop tech that actually matters to the company. I mean, even Ferrari had incorporated KERS into their road cars, and recently they have incorporated turbo design in their cars too. I'm sure the next supercar from Ferrari will feature turbo and hybrid tech, just like how LaFerrari had KERS. This shows that these new tech are useful to these companies even Ferrari. So I don't see F1 ever going back to V8, not even Ferrari would agree, IMO.

[Rob]

I believe it's part of modernizing the technology in F1. Love it or hate it, we have to admit that high capacity NA engines are old tech and they were only there because of the regulations. In an open formula, all teams will go for turbo charged V6 due to it's efficiency, which is something we actually saw happened, until FIA banned turbo tech.

Furthermore, when we see other sports like LeMans, they are adopting turbo engine with hybrid system too. So had F1 stuck with V8, we would look ancient when compared to LMP, and F1 would be less attractive to car makers as they will not be able to develop tech that actually matters to the company. I mean, even Ferrari had incorporated KERS into their road cars, and recently they have incorporated turbo design in their cars too. I'm sure the next supercar from Ferrari will feature turbo and hybrid tech, just like how LaFerrari had KERS. This shows that these new tech are useful to these companies even Ferrari. So I don't see F1 ever going back to V8, not even Ferrari would agree, IMO.

Toyota uses a V8 non turbo. In WEC they are free to use what ever engine they want to get the same goal. Porsche V6 Audi V6 both using turbos.WEC is looking more attractable to manufacturers.

[Rob]

Just watched FP2, and on about one stop strategy. So what all the moaning about tyre war would produce one stop race as tyres be to durable. So what we got at the moment then? what we had for past few races? one stop races.

[The Architect]

I think the reaction to refuelling is disappointing. It's nonsense to suggest that no overtaking happened due to refuelling.

However, I was surprised by the support for a tyre war. While I'd like to get rid of Pirelli as much as the next person, a tyre war is destructive and in the absence of testing could be a bigger differentiating factor than even engines. The teams must be able to hold their destiny in their own hands as far as possible. Alonso would never have won his titles without benefitting from the last tyre war.

[Stormy]

Alonso would never have won his titles without benefitting from the last tyre war.

I thought he benefited mostly from the Mass Damper...
And Mclaren had the faster car 2005, but their Mercedes engine was not reliable at all. To many DFN's because of that.